Author: Rebekah Eastep

The Norfolk community really gave it their all for the Great American Cleanup this year! To celebrate the season of spring cleaning and greening in communities across America, the City of Norfolk and Keep Norfolk Beautiful hosted and organized a variety of events from March to June. Activities included neighborhood and park cleanups like those in Ingleside and Villa Heights, education and outreach during Lafayette RiverFest, wetland grass planting in Colley Bay, cigarette litter prevention outreach, several recycling events, many waterway cleanups and lots of beautification through planting trees and flowers or sprucing up existing gardens. Phew, I’m exhausted after just listing all those activities! The Norfolk community truly shows a dedication to making their city a great place to live. Clean Community Coordinator, Lisa Renée Jennings, shared with askHRgreen the results of their hard work during the Great American Cleanup:

• There were 70 individual events in Norfolk for the Great American Cleanup
• Over 2,500 volunteers came out and made the events successful
• 49,610 pounds of litter and debris were removed from neighborhoods and waterways
• Over 3,000 plants were added to the community including the new wetland grasses in Colley Bay
• Over 400 gallons of household hazardous waste chemicals were safely collected and disposed of properly

Great job, Norfolk! You should all be proud of your efforts to Keep Norfolk Beautiful!